The Sounds
by Hazelcough
Summary: -Complete- When aspiring artist Li Syaoran loses his best drummer, Sakura comes to the rescue. But in a music scene of deceit, rivalry, and lost dreams, what will her appearance bring? SxS, ExT.
1. Prologue

The Sounds

**The Sounds**

**Prologue**

"…_because some days it seems like the clouds won't stay away…"_

The small crowd gathered at the foot of the equally small low wooden stage went wild, drawing in a few curious glances from the people passing by on the sidewalk, attempting to get through. 

"_Turn your back because you can't understand. I can't get through; I can't get through to you…"_

But that was it. A few curious glances; no questions, no one staying to watch the band as they beat out a beat that vibrated between the buildings. A few people had on faces of annoyance – not everyone was a fan of drumbeats and guitar solos, after all.

"…_just tell me…"_

As the music drowned out, what was left of the gathering disbanded, leaving four 17 year old boys to clean up. The figure at the front – a tall, slender boy – turned to the one in the back packing up his drums.

"That drum solo was better than ever, Takashi," he complimented with a rare smile and equally rare amber eyes to match. "But you might want to work on those rolls at the end. I can't finish a song properly by myself."

The boy with the drums, Takashi, smiled serenely, and a hint of an eye-roll was evident. "Syaoran, must you always have some type of criticism?"

"It's the only way we can improve –"

"He was only joking, man. You're the reason we're even here," interjected a graceful boy with navy blue hair. Draped across his sculpted chest was a worn-out electric guitar that looked as if it had been through five years of constant stressing. 

"Here?" Syaoran snorted humorlessly. "Where is here, Eriol? A small street in the big city with an almost-nonexistent fan base?"

"It's something…"

Syaoran sighed, running a hand through already-tousled chestnut hair. Eriol was right. "Yeah, it's something."

**x – x – x**

"…_it's just what I need."_

With a large drumroll, the guitar riff ended.

Screams filled the air and Syaoran's sun-kissed ears. Smirking at the end of another success, he winked at no one in particular in the large concert hall. The screams raised in volume instantaneously. 

Li Syaoran had become a magician.

The bronzed singer left the stage energetically, though all his energy had been drained. It was all part of the act. Eriol and Takashi followed, leaving the new bass guitarist they had hired to take down the stage.

"Yamazaki," Eriol yawned out as soon as they were off the stage, "tell him." He stared at Takashi expectantly, raising an eyebrow.

"Eriol, not now. We just got a new bass…" Takashi hissed, nervously glancing at Syaoran, who was now looking extremely bored.

"What is it now, Takashi? Another broken stick?" Syaoran laughed louder than needed, making the poor drummer feel very uncomfortable. Syaoran had recently taken a liking to teasing his sexuality.

"No, Li," he replied coldly, fed up with the jokes. "I wanted to inform you that I'm leaving."

"Okay, well see you tomorrow at Eriol's. Try to at least practice a little this time, alright man?" Syaoran turned towards the dressing rooms, walking away.

"Syaoran…"

He never stopped walking. "Can't a guy take a leak, Eriol? It's not even you doing all the work up there." Syaoran's voice was suddenly filled with sarcasm, disinterest, and a hint of…disgust? "And work on that stupid riff of yours. Don't make me cover for you again."

The dressing room door slammed violently.

**x – x – x**

"What do you mean, _he left_?!"

Eriol raised his eyebrow. "Yamazaki told you yesterday after the concert, Syaoran."

The distraught lead singer paced around the small attic hurriedly, kicking Eriol's amplifier a few times.

He winced. "Dude, Syaoran. You know I can't afford another amp. The bosses aren't paying us until we reach our sales quota."

"Well Takashi knew that I can't afford to replace another guy!" Syaoran yelled at his friend. "Where the hell am I supposed to find another drummer before tomorrow's expo?"

"Takashi already has that taken care of," Eriol replied matter-of-factly. "He isn't as thoughtless as you." 

Syaoran glared at him. "So what's that idiot's big idea?"

"She's coming in about five minutes."

"SHE?!"

"Problem, Syaoran?"

"Yes, I do have a problem with that, Eriol Hiiragizawa! If –"

Syaoran's problem was never heard, as at that moment, the door to the attic flew open. Soft footsteps flew up the wooden steps fleetingly. A clump of wild auburn hair peeked over the top of the staircase leading up to the duo. A pair of bright green eyes revealed themselves. Then the body came.

She was a small, gaunt figure with the largest glasses Syaoran had ever seen on a girl. A canvas messenger bag was draped over her shoulder, two flimsy drumsticks peeking out of it. 

"What the hell were you thinking, Hiiragizawa?" Syaoran hissed dangerously.

The girl didn't notice anything wrong as she dipped her head frantically and introduced herself to Eriol.

"Sorry I'm late, Li-kun! My name's Kinomoto – Kinomoto Sakura. I'm your new drummer." She turned to look questioningly at a fuming Syaoran. "Is this the guitarist?"

Eriol snickered. "You do know, Syaoran, that we get more funding if there's a girl in our band, don't you?"

**x – x – x**

**A/N: **Smooth Silver WILL be updated. I just had to get the plot bunny caught on paper before it hopped away D:. 

CSS and all characters belong to CLAMP. (Which means I've made it this far without OCs! : D)

Anyways, this fic will be SxS, but it'll have some implications to my own opinions on CD ripping and the label-band relationship.


	2. Chapter 1: Sound it Out

The Sounds

**The Sounds**

**Chapter 1 – Sound it Out**

**Eriol's Attic**

"Well, bring on more candidates!"

"This is hard, Syaoran," Eriol complained, yawning. "Why did you have to drive the bassist away again?" It had been day three of "find-the-perfect-bassist", and they were getting nowhere.

"Because he sucked," Syaoran stated simply. "You know what else is hard?"

"Yes, Syaoran – your manhood when you look at our drummer," Eriol replied with a smirk. "Anyone can see that." Dodging a bundle of cords, Eriol kept smiling.

"That's not cool. You're not supposed to use my own comeback against me," he muttered. "Besides, that's anything but true. That idiot geek…"

"Then why are you still keeping 'that idiot geek' with us?" Eriol pried playfully.

"Because she's a damn good drummer, baka! Besides, we get more funding this way, remember?"

"Touchy, touchy, Syaoran." Eriol glanced at the staircase. "Shh, I think bassist number one is here."

Sure enough, a few seconds later, a soft knock reached their ears. "You're amazing, Hiiragizawa," Syaoran murmured. "Come in." He focused on his empty clipboard, attempting to look professional as the boy shyly came up. "Your name?"

"Tohma, sir. Tohma Ryu," he blabbered out nervously. "I…I –"

"You…you are already getting on my nerves, Ryu-kun," Syaoran stated coldly. Eriol sighed. This was how all the auditions went. _Where did the old Syaoran go?_

"Wha…?"

"I don't like being addressed like I'm some sort of old man, _sir_. How old are you, anyways?"

"S-seventeen," Ryu mumbled. Syaoran looked him over. _Quite tall for 17. Not bad-looking either. _His green hair and eyes matched his bass perfectly, and Syaoran almost snorted at the juvenile arrangement.

"Well then, Tohma, you're only two years younger than me and Eriol, and one year younger than Kinomoto, our drummer. Please don't annoy me any more."

"Yes s – I mean, Li-sama."

Syaoran stared at Ryu. Ryu stared back, confused and uncomfortable.

Eriol muffled a laugh. "Ryu-chan, you might want to start now," he whispered playfully with a wink.

"Oh, of course."

Ryu unpacked his amplifier – it had been in the audition requirements that a personal amp had to be brought (as Eriol wanted to mooch off of the best-equipped competitor) – and wired everything up without missing a beat.

"Ooh, he can wire," Eriol muttered to Syaoran.

Syaoran smirked. "But can he do anything else?" Then, louder: "Can you play me the bass part to 'Clouds'?"

Ryu nodded shakily. The boy closed his eyes, finding a beat, then started moving his fingers.

Yes, his fingers did indeed move, but hardly any sound came out. Syaoran leaned in, annoyed. "Can you – "

Suddenly, the room exploded. A rich, low bass sound filled vibrated off of the low, slanted roof of the attic. The bass part to "Clouds" was hardly a melodic part, but Ryu played it as if it were the main guitar riff. Eriol gaped at the development; the boy was not the same shy boy who had stepped into his attic a few minutes ago.

His entire body emanated confidence and pride. Syaoran couldn't help but feel a little envious.

Eriol suddenly snapped out of his daze. "Sakura-chan's coming," he murmured to Syaoran.

Syaoran stiffened.

At the second to last measure of the piece – which was the quietest bass part – the low creak of the attic door was heard, then the usual rushed footsteps. 

"SORRY SORRY SOR –"

Syaoran's eyes closed instinctively as the crash came. Two or three cracks followed, along with the PING-PING-PING-PING of (all) the strings.

"If it isn't the idiot drummer…"

"Hoeee. I'm so sorry," Sakura muttered, straightening up from the mess she had created at the top of the staircase. She adjusted her glasses, then looked around, seeing the disheveled green-haired boy staring longingly at his (broken) guitar. "Are you okay?"

Ryu's eyes met Sakura's, sparkling with tears. "I am, but I don't think my guitar is."

Syaoran snorted. "How child –"

"HOW CUTE!" Sakura exclaimed, pulling a frightened Ryu into a bear hug. "I'm sorry, I'll pay for it. What's your name?"

"R – Ryu," he whimpered.

"I'm Sakura. Nice to meet you, Ryu-chan!" She turned to Syaoran. "Can we keep him?" she asked, pouting.

"Uhh…of course," Syaoran stuttered, trying to keep his face hidden underneath his clipboard, still not written on.

Eriol snickered.

"Shut it. I was going to hire him anyways. Welcome to _The Ambient, _Tohma."

**x – x – x**

**Sun Records – Main office**

"If _The Ambient _sells two hundred more CDs, we'll have to make room for them on the tour," the dark-haired man said dangerously to his female brown-haired counterpart.

She smirked. "That won't do at all, Spinnel. We can't make the other boy bands any more agitated than we already have, can we?"

"Right, Nakuru-san."

"Actually, we can afford to lose some of these desperate wannabes…but that wouldn't be any fun, would it?"

"Of course not."

"We need as many desperate wannabes making us money as we can get, right?"

"Right."

"Then see to it that _The Ambient_ don't reach their quota this year."

"You can count on me!"

Nakuru scowled. "Don't say that, please."

Spinnel grinned sheepishly. "Of course not, Nakuru-san," he said. "But I will see to it that those kids don't go anywhere this year."

**x – x – x**

**Sun Records – Lobby **

"Idiot drummer, I don't think it's up to you whether or not I approach them."

"But Li, Nakuru-san might not forgive us again if you create another commotion in the lobby," Sakura pleaded. 

Syaoran sighed, frustrated. "Nakuru loves you, dummy." His voice rose two octaves. "'Oh, _Sakura-chan_, aren't you cute today?' 'Oh _Sakura-chan_, why don't you come over for a cup of tea?'" He smirked, watching Sakura's expression shift from concern to anger. 

"Go ahead then, Li. I'd love to see them kick your ass." She turned and left the lobby, Eriol and their newest comrade, Ryu, trailing behind.

"Don't think too much on it, Sakura-chan," Eriol said softly. "He wasn't always like this."

"I don't get it, Eriol-kun. Why is he always so mean? Even to you…Li's always so cruel," she murmured. "I just don't get it. If he was really that nice, why did Takashi quit? Maybe I should quit too…"

"He just needs a little time, Sakura-chan. I think the fame's gone to his head. We were on the streets for so long, after all." Eriol smiled. "It'd be great if someone were to be able to break through the jerk on the outside."

"I want to break through every part of him," Sakura muttered bitterly, adjusting her glasses. Ryu laughed lightly. 

"Don't worry, Ryu-kun. Soon enough, you'll be like her too." Eriol smiled humorlessly. _What happened to you, Syaoran?_

The trio turned around in time to see the Syaoran approaching the lead singer of _Motile_ and the vice-president, Spinnel. 

"May I help you, Li?" the vocalist, Ichiro, sneered. 

"Yes, Ichi-chan. Why did you post that note on our recording room door?" Syaoran snarled back

"What note, Li?" he asked, genuinely surprised. 

"Don't play with me. Only your band would post some crap on our door saying that we have to sell _five hundred thousand_ CDs to go on tour this year. Everyone knows your band is the one we'd be kicking off if we got the tour spot."

"I really didn't, Li," Ichiro replied, peeved. "I don't know what you're getting at, accusing me of something like that in front of the vice –"

"I posted that, Li-kun."

Syaoran looked to the man who had just spoken, shocked. "Spinnel-sama?" His voice rose slightly. "Why would you do that to us?! We're so close already and –"

Spinnel simply smiled his salesman's smile. "Don't worry Li-kun, you will be compensated."

"Compensation? But we were really looking forward to going on tour…"

"'We'? Or you?" Syaoran closed his mouth. "I'm sure your fellow band members make music for the sake of the music. Besides, I'm sure they'd be glad to hear that you're finally getting a professional manager." Something Syaoran could not quite place glimmered in the vice president's eyes.

"Manager?"

"Me."

Ichiro's jaw dropped, and the entire lobby went silent. 

Only a feminine silhouette watching from behind the glass of the second floor moved. Tipping a glass of water delicately, she let the liquid dip onto her slender index finger, smiling wolfishly.

"Good job, Spinnel. Let the ripples widen. Let them destroy each other."

**x – x – x**

**Sun Records – Recording room B42**

"How could Spinnel-sama manage_ them _and not us?"

"Are you going to do something about it, Ichiro?"

The boy smirked. "Who would I be if I didn't? We're not letting some newbie band kick us off the top."

"What will you do? Rig the instruments?"

"No, too obvious, Keiji." Ichiro thought some more, scratching his scalp through thick golden hair. "We'll ruin one of them…the girl. She's the one they can't afford to replace."

"How?"

"Get me the company records."

**x – x – x**

**A/N: **Wow, I must be crazy, updating my stories instead of working on my spring break homework.

This fic will probably be no longer than 10 chapters if I can help it. But life isn't perfect Dx.

Hmm, well I borrowed Ryu's appearance from Gravitation (Ryuichi Sakuma). So…

I in no way own any part of CSS or Gravitation or anything else anime-like ):. 

Truthfully, Gravitation is the only shounen-ai I watch.

Don't expect the next chapter soon D:. But then again, I may surprise you.


	3. Chapter 2: Sound Foundation

The Sounds

**The Sounds**

**Chapter 2 – Sound Foundation**

**Eriol's Attic**

"WHAT?!"

Eriol shook his head. "You heard what I said the first time, Syaoran. Why don't you open up your rusted mind?"

"Then all his neurons would fall out, and we'd all be happy," Sakura muttered.

Syaoran glared at the girl, but she remained unfazed. "Anyways, there's no way in hell I'd take up a guitar on stage. It'd ruin my movements."

"Oh, you mean your occasional shift from one leg to the other?" Ryu joked, joining the Syaoran-bashing with much enthusiasm. "I always thought that was you needing to use the restroom. You _do _always do that after a concert, I hear."

Sakura giggled at this, ruffling Ryu's hair even more. Syaoran felt nauseatingly uncomfortable, partly because of the fact that he was sitting on a stool in front of the couch he and Eriol typically sat in. The occupants of the couch were the other three members of his band, sitting comfortably in their stolen spots. Syaoran wondered how they managed to fit on the two-seater without becoming…intimate. He shuddered. _I'm not _that_ fat._

It was yet another eventless rehearsal, much of which had been taken up by pointless bickering over whether or not another guitar part would be added.

"We don't need another guitar part, guys," Syaoran pleaded in vain. "Besides, I don't know how to play guitar," he admitted.

Ryu raised an eyebrow. "What lead singer doesn't know how to play guitar?"

"Him, obviously," Sakura snorted. 

"Not even a little?"

"No."

Sakura turned to Eriol, shooting daggers through her thick lenses. "Why didn't you tell me this before you got all into the whole 'Make Syaoran Take Up a Guitar' scheme? I actually bought the whole thing about making his pieces sound more…pregnant."

"Loaded was the word, Sakura-chan. _Loaded_, not pregnant. I just wanted to be entertained," he replied nonchalantly with a yawn. Sakura's steady glare did not seem to faze him or his conscience. "It's been so dull since Spinnel-baka raised our quota. No more looking forward to going on tour."

Syaoran smirked, pleased he had won.

Sakura mimicked his smirk, then scowled. "No worries, Li-kun. I can teach you how to play guitar." She smiled innocently. "You'll learn in _no time_," she drawled.

Syaoran snorted disbelievingly. "You? You're already an idiot drummer. What will the world come to when you play the guitar?" He placed a finger on his chin, seemingly in deep thought. "Epic fail guitarist Kinomoto. I kind of like that."

"Syaoran…" Eriol muttered, eyes twinkling in amusement.

"Don't interrupt me, Eriol. I'm on a roll. You know, Kinomoto, if you can actually play me a scale on the guitar, I'll take those lessons with you." He thought some more. "And if you can play me a real riff, I'll pay you with all the money I have. If you can't, you will have to pay me." Syaoran smirked.

To his surprise, Sakura smirked back. "It's a deal then, Li." His face dropped.

"What?"

Eriol groaned. "Don't start that again. You should've listened to me, Syaoran…Sakura and the guitar are like frosting and cake."

"More like butter and waffles," Sakura said. "Much less fattening."

"Frosting or butter, either way, you're getting creamed, Kinomoto," Syaoran growled, though a hint of doubt laced his voice.

Ryu's voice interjected shyly. "Sakura, do you want to use my acoustic guitar?"

Sakura shook her head and smiled. "No thanks, Ryu-chan. I always practice with Eriol's electric when we're here. It wouldn't feel right."

"Hey, hold on. _Always_? How come I don't know any of this?" Syaoran asked with a hint of anger. Fear, however, was most prevalent in his features.

"Ask yourself that, Syaoran," Eriol replied coyly. Syaoran's face dropped, and he mumbled something under his breath.

"Can we start now?" Sakura whined. "I'm plugged already."

"Fire away, Sakura-chan."

She did fire away. First came the scale; not just one octave. It wasn't even just one note at a time. Her bony fingers played thirds, fifths, fourths, and finally, in a full-out octave scale.

"And here we have it," Eriol announced to an invisible microphone. "Li Syaoran will have to play guitar!"

"Shush Eriol, I want to make some of his money too," Sakura hissed. Her fingers stopped for a second, then shifted into position. Starting out softly at first, she played the riff that Eriol had been having trouble with earlier that week.

"That's not that impressive," Syaoran said stubbornly. "Eriol can play that too. He can give me lessons."

"Actually, Syaoran, I only played that part perfectly after Sakura-chan helped me with it…"

"I hate you too, Hiiragizawa."

"I'm sorry."

"If she's so good, why doesn't she play the extra guitar part?"

"Because you can't play drums while singing, baka."

Sakura held a hand in front of Syaoran's face, putting their argument to a stop. "Pay up, Li."

He scowled, his entire face emanating hate for the idiot drummer. "I _will _get my money back, Kinomoto..."

"The day I want to kiss an ass like you, you will."

**x – x – x**

**Sakura's House**

Sakura had just fallen headfirst onto her bed when the doorbell rang.

"Hoe. Not now," she moaned. There was no way in hell she would deal with anyone else today. Li Syaoran took all of the energy right out of her – and they hadn't even started lessons yet. "I'm going to die."

"Sakura!" called her father, his voice sounding very vile to her. "Tomoyo's here to see you!"

Immediately brightening again, Sakura flew to the door. Pushing past her father, she flung herself onto the neck of the figure at the door, almost expecting her father to say, "I was just kidding, Sakura-chan. I meant the lead singer guy you always so vivaciously complain about is here."

Fortunately, he didn't.

Unfortunately, Syaoran was the one to break it to her.

"Kinomoto? You're cutting off my air supply," he choked out to her shoulder, cheeks blazing

"HOEEE!" Sakura let go of him as if he were toxic, bowing her head and tearing back up to her room. Syaoran heard the door slam, the biting sound making him wince.

"Gomen, Li-kun," Fujitaka said with his perpetual smile. He adjusted his glasses. "I really thought you were Daidouji-san for a second. Must be your…body…sha –" He cut himself off.

"It's alright, Kinomoto-san," Syaoran replied uncomfortably. _Body shape?!_

"Well, you should come by some other time, Li-kun."

"Of course."

Syaoran left the small yellow house wondering why his face had been so responsive to Sakura's smell. It was definitely her smell. _Just her smell, _he thought, attempting to convince himself. _That's it._

He had forgotten to tell Sakura that their concert the next day had been cancelled.

**x – x – x**

**Sakura's Room**

"Tomoyo-channn," Sakura whined into her mouthpiece, "save me."

"I heard the members of that band are all really hot, though," Tomoyo insensitively replied. "Especially that vocalist."

Sakura groaned. "Please, Tomoyo. You're not helping."

"Sorry," Tomoyo said sheepishly. "Anyways, what's so bad about being in such a popular band with such awesome gu –"

"That's what's bad! The guys aren't awesome. Well, two of them are, but Li – the vocalist, by the way – is a complete _dick_," she exclaimed.

"I'm sure it's not that bad. They're all professionals."

"Only on stage, Tomoyo."

"Whatever you say, Sakura-chan." Tomoyo yawned. "Are you ever going to come over and pick up your contacts? They've been ready for two months now."

"Sorry, I was busy. Besides, I kind of like these glasses."

Tomoyo sighed. "Whatever, Sakura. You know that boys are going to like you with or without those hideous things."

"But I think it's working!" Sakura pouted, though she knew Tomoyo couldn't see.

"You need to get over it," Tomoyo replied, voice completely serious.

Neither of them spoke for a while, though the silence was not entirely awkward.

"I'll try, Tomoyo…I'll really try."

**x – x – x**

**A/N: **Hmm, while I'm in the process of making Smooth Silver less "weird' and "twisted" (not sure if that's a good thing D:…), this story seems much easier to update.

Anyways, this chapter is a bit short because I wrote it in the morning as my parents were bugging me to pack for our trip to Houston. 

I'll probably go back and find tons of grammar slip-ups.


	4. Chapter 3: The Sounds of Ambience

The Sounds

**The Sounds**

**Chapter 3 – The Sounds of Ambience**

**Eriol's Attic**

Eriol was sleeping when his cell phone, equipped with the band's newest midi ring tone, started to vibrate near his thigh. He groaned slightly, fumbling for the annoyance.

"Ughmmmgh?" he grunted into the mouthpiece, checking the time on his alarm clock. It read 2:00. "Who is this?"

A soft giggle resonated on the other end.

"Sakura-chan?"

"I'm sorry, Eriol-kun. Did I wake you up?" Sakura asked, voice completely sincere. 

"Did you wake me up? Tell me, Sakura – what time is it in your world?" 

"I hardly ever sleep before a concert. I get too excited," she explained.

"Did you need something?" Eriol asked a bit impatiently, barely keeping track of the conversation.

"Oh, sorry. I forgot my drumsticks at your house today. Would you mind bringing them to the concert tomorrow?" Eriol could hear Sakura's blush through the airwaves. "I just realized that I didn't have them. Sorry," she apologized again.

"Alright, Saku – wait. Didn't Syaoran tell you that our concert was canceled?" Eriol sat up, now fully awake.

"Well Li-kun did come by earlier…"

_Of course. That ass doesn't have her number, _Eriol realized, recalling their argument about keeping in touch with each other. ("If I had to exchange numbers with a girl, I'd do it with my dog before her," he had snarled, "and my dog died two years ago, if you'll recall."

"…but he uhh…" Sakura trailed off guiltily, playing with the timeline a bit. "…he left without saying much."

"I didn't know he was low enough to play a trick like that," Eriol muttered, peeved at his friend. "The area near the Ruido is shady, Sakura. You could've been…"

"It's alright, Eriol-kun," Sakura replied hastily. "I'll have to go by there anyways tomorrow…or today, I mean, considering the time."

"Why would you need to go to that part of town?"

"Oh, my friend lives around there. I have to pick up…something…from her house."

Eriol paused, wondering what kind of friends Sakura had. Truth be told, he had never thought about it much – it didn't seem realistic that another world existed outside of his attic and the Sun Records building. 

"Be careful, Sakura-chan," was the only thing he could offer.

**x – x – x**

**Sun Records – Main office**

"Playing with these rookie bands is quite amusing. You canceled their concert, right?" Nakuru asked with a large grin.

The sly manager laughed heartily. "I did, I did. Li actually bought the bullshit about them wanting to add in an hour of videos commemorating Ruido's former owner."

Nakuru's grin faded, leaving a raised eyebrow. "That is the crappiest story I've ever heard, Spinnel. You really are obsolete. I don't understand why anyone would want an old piece of flesh like you managing them."

"It worked, and that's what's important," Spinnel replied, smile never dimming.

"Sure, sure," Nakuru said appeasingly. She sighed, taking a look at the cloudy sky outside. A rainstorm was coming. "Now on to the next phase – leakage."

"What will tampering with their bathrooms do?" Spinnel asked seriously.

"Baka. Just do exactly as I say." With that, Nakuru reached into her desk drawer. She looked around, eyes brightening when she saw the flat, metallic object. Reaching for it, she motioned to Spinnel.

"Take this to recording room B42…"

**x – x – x**

**Sun Records – Recording room A18**

"_Goodbyes are meant for lonely people standing in the rain, and no matter where I go, it's always pouring all the same."_

Syaoran stopped, mingling over the stings under his fingers. _If I have to, I'll learn guitar by myself. It can't be that hard… _A sour chord came out, making Syaoran wince. But he continued.

"_All you did was stop the bleeding. But these scars will stay forever, these scars will stay forever…and these words they have no meaning."_

Syaoran's mind was distracted by a fist at the glass of the recording room that appeared in his peripheral vision. Annoyed, he put down the guitar.

"What do you want, Ryu?" he asked as he saw the clump of green hair that appeared at the door.

"Just looking for Sakura. I haven't seen her all morning, and I wanted to ask her about this part in my music," Ryu replied, unfazed. "By the way, depressing lyrics like that will lose us some of the fans we already have."

"You mean _I_ already have," Syaoran correctly irritably. "I'm just experimenting, gaki. Go and find your Sakura-cha –"

Ryu's cheeks tingled a bit, and he left without another word. In his haste, he didn't notice Syaoran's horrified expression.

"I didn't tell her, did I?"

**x – x – x**

**Sun Records – Recording room B42**

Ichiro put up his arms in frustration.

"Sempai, this is impossible," Keiji moaned, rubbing his eyes in exhaustion. "This girl is clean. _Completely clean_."

"This cannot be happening," the vocalist growled. He opened his mouth to continue on his soapbox, but his words were put to a halt by a confident knock.

Ichiro stormed to the door, grabbing the handle violently. "WHAT?!" he spat to the face of the visitor. He immediately wanted to bite his tongue off.

"Good morning, Ichiro-san," said a calm-looking Spinnel. He smiled gently.

"G – gomen, Spinnel-sama."

"No need, Ichiro-san. I just wanted to drop by and give you this." He handed a single unlabeled compact disc to the boy. "This is _The Ambient's_ raw for their new CD. They gave one to pretty much every band they are friends with, as a sampler. I don't see why Li-san didn't give one to you." In some twisted way, Spinnel's story had truth to it. _The Ambient_ did not have band friends. Li Syaoran would not approve of it.

"Wait –"

Spinnel put a hand up to silence Ichiro. "I trust that you will do the right thing with that disc." With that, the older man left.

Keiji approached Ichiro. "Sempai, want me to burn it?" he asked excitedly. "Or maybe we can toss it through a window and see how far it fli –"

"No," Ichiro replied, a sly grin making its way to his face. "I know exactly what to do with this. Get me the laptop."

**x – x – x**

**Ruido – The Exterior**

Syaoran sat down on the cold stone bench, shivering. In his haste, he had forgotten to don a sweater.

A string of curses escaped his mouth as the rain began to pour. The man in black at the door would not let Syaoran in without a pass. So there he sat, waiting for Sakura, whom he thought would be late.

A few shady-looking people passed by, eyeing Syaoran hungrily. He squeezed his eyes shut, allowing the cold rain to wash past his eyes. He started singing to keep himself warm. _"Goodbyes are meant for lonely people standing in the rain, and no matter where I go, it's always pouring all the same."_

But his voice shook with such vigor that he was forced to stop. Where was Sakura?

He decided that he was going to freeze to death before said girl would overcome her lateness.

Shrinking into fetal position, Syaoran began to reexamine his motives.

_Why am I doing this?_

_Because you want to make sure she isn't molested. _

_Of course._

_So you won't lose a band member._

_That's definitely why._

…_and so you'll still have a chance at her virtue._

"Who's virtue, Li-kun?"

"Shut up!" Syaoran yelled, not realizing he was literally speaking his mind.

He looked up, seeing a confused (and hurt?) Sakura standing in front of him.

Laughing bitterly, Syaoran spoke. "It was nothing. You know, Kinomoto, if we really had a concert today, you'd be" – he checked his imaginary watch – "half an hour late."

"But we don't," Sakrua said, confused.

Syaoran's face stretched in surprise. "How did you know?"

"Eriol told me." Sakura stared at him some more. "You felt guilty, didn't you Li? That you tricked me into coming here today. So you came to tell me the truth."

"No, that's –"

"It's okay, I totally get it. Besides, I think we're even. I choked you yesterday, after all," Sakura said, brushing away Syaoran's stuttering. She turned away from him, surveying the rain in her jeans and t-shirt. He looked down at his feet, shivering some more. Sakura looked back at him and frowned. "Aren't you cold?"

"Yes," Syaoran bit out.

"Follow me. We need to get to somewhere dry before you catch something." Sakura walked across the sidewalk, waiting for her cue to cross the busy street.

Stiffly, Syaoran followed suit. He saw that Sakura's thick frames were fogging up. "Isn't that annoying?"

"Hold on," she said as an answer. Taking the large object off of her nose, she wiped it against her shirt softly. Neither of them noticed the large puddle of rainwater in front of them.

A car came skidding dangerously close to the duo, painfully covering them in mud and grime. 

"HOEE," Sakura yelled, dropping her glasses. They shattered on the sidewalk with a sickening crunch. Syaoran looked at the shattered glass with concern, his mind finally catching up. He was about to ask Sakura if she needed help.

She had already walked halfway across the street. "Li-kun, are you just going stand there?" Sakura asked with a smile.

Running to catch up with the girl, Syaoran felt extremely confused. _She can see?_

One look at her emerald eyes answered his question – Sakura's large, – beautiful – bright eyes were not ones that struggled to see.

She noticed his questioning gaze. Pointing to her left eye, she winked softly. "Contacts," she whispered, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Then why the hell were you wear –"

"We're here!" Sakura chirped. Her mood did not seem to match the exterior of the building they had stopped in front of. Its moldy walls gave Syaoran the chills.

"Where is here?"

"Nii-chan's apartment," Sakura replied cheerfully.

Syaoran sneezed, prompting Sakura to lead him in.

They climbed five flights of stairs, reaching the acme of the building. Fumbling through her old canvas bag, she brought out an ancient set of keys. "Here we are," Sakura said as she pushed the key in and turned. The plain-wooden-board of a door opened with an enormous creak.

"Nii-chan is at work right now, so I'm sure he won't mind if we crash in here for a few minutes," she explained as she walked to the couch. Syaoran followed, sitting down quite awkwardly in his wet clothes.

"Take your clothes off," Sakura suggested as she handed Syaoran a bottle of water.

He choked on the liquid, heat immediately rising to his cheeks.

"So you won't catch a fever," Sakura added hastily, realizing what she had asked of him. "You can uhh…change into some of my brother's clothes. His room is the one at the end of the hall."

"Thanks, Kinomoto," Syaoran replied awkwardly. "And sorry."

"What for?"

"I'm not quite sure myself."

**x – x – x**

**A/N: **This chapter was quite fun to write, I must admit – especially the last portion!

There'll come a point in time when I run out of original phrases to use :(. Oh, the terror ..

I was really lost on club names, so of course, I borrowed one 0=). 

**Disclaimer:** Ruido is from Gravitation. Lyrics are from The Morning Light & Secondhand Serenade. Characters are from Card Captor Sakura.

I obviously don't own any of it.


	5. Chapter 4: The Sounds of Discord

The Sounds

**The Sounds**

**Chapter 4 – The Sounds of Discord**

**Sun Records – Recording room A18**

The four teenagers stared at the screen in shock.

"No way," Ryu muttered.

"But it's right there," Syaoran growled dangerously. "Did you do this, Tohma?"

"Why would I –"

"That 'no way' of yours sounded forced."

Eriol smacked Syaoran over the head. "That's not right, man. Ryu-chan would never do something like that, so just shut the hell up, Syaoran; any of us could've leaked it."

Syaoran glared at Eriol. "Why would I leak _my_ own CD?" he yelled, irritated.

Sakura lost it at that point. "'_My_ CD,'" she mimicked softly. "Then go ahead. Make_ your_ CD all by yourself; without a drummer." Uneven bangs shading her newly-exposed eyes, she left the room swiftly, slamming the glass door of the recording room after her. The air in the room weighed down on the remaining trio's shoulders.

"I'm going too," Ryu muttered after a moment of heavy silence.

"Why?" Syaoran sneered. "Is it because dear Sakura-chan is gone?"

"Yes, actually," Ryu replied casually. "If it hadn't been for her, I would've left as soon as I joined." The green-haired boy followed suit, his slam shaking the room more than Sakura's had.

Syaoran dropped his fists on the table, shaking the laptop, its screen still displaying the horrible news. A weird sensation crept up in the back of his brain. Jealousy? He yelled, burying his head inside his toned arms. "Stupid, stupid, stupid. I don't understand my own brain, Eriol."

"If your brain were complex enough to understand itself, it'd be too complex to understand," Eriol muttered dully.

"Shut up, Hiiragizawa. Are you thinking of leaving me too?"

"Thinking about it, yes."

"Anything I can do about it?"

Eriol thought for a second, tapping his chin mockingly. "If Sakura and Ryu come back, I'll stay. Otherwise, you need to find yourself three new fresh bodies to abuse, Li." He sighed, staring dismally at the screen. "I've had enough of this crap. Who would leak our new CD two whole months before the preorders are even available? And on a website that gets so many damn hits?" A sudden glint of realization passed across his ocean-blue eyes, but disappeared before Syaoran could see it.

"Well Li, I'm going to go for the day. There's not much point in staying in a recording room if we only have half a band and a leaked CD," Eriol said casually. "See you tomorrow…maybe."

As Syaoran's best friend left the room, his words finally caught up to him. "I do need new bodies to abuse, don't I?" Syaoran murmured bitterly, realizing the brutal truth. "I'm such an ass."

**x – x – x**

**Eriol's Attic**

"Sakura-chan, do you know anyone good with computers?" Eriol lay sprawled on the unmade duvet, wrapping the cord of his phone around one finger.

The girl on the other line paused. "I do, but she lives near –"

"Doesn't matter. I'll go to Kyoto if I have to. Just give me the address."

**x – x – x**

**An old apartment building in Tokyo**

Eriol had passed Ruido, following the drummer's instructions precisely. "This should be it," he muttered as he approached the shady complex. The gray exterior of the ancient building seemed to loll with the smog in the sky, creating a kind of dissonance that he couldn't quite put his finger on.

Anticipation hung in the air.

Making his way past the weed-infested lawn, Eriol managed to pry open the rusted metal door. _What kind of friends does Sakura-chan have anyways?_

He looked down at the crumbled scrap of stationary in his hand, reading the number again. Apartment number 17. Eriol quickly found the dull golden number protruding from the whitewashed wall.

"This should be it," he repeated, reaching for the plain knocker. Before he could even touch the contraption, however, a gust of wind blew past his body. The wind nudged the door open, its lock useless against the minimal force.

"Is anyone home?" he called hesitantly, reluctant to step in. "I'm Hiiragizawa Eriol. Sakura sent –"

"_The_ Hiiragizawa Eriol?!" A short, raven-haired girl with large amethyst eyes came into the main room, a crazed expression on her face. "I have _all_ of your guitar riffs programmed into my computer. They're pure genius!" she exclaimed, looking up at the ceiling as if it were the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. "I even took the liberty of downloading your newest CD. It's a shame that it leaked, but I promise I'll buy it once it comes out," the girl promised.

"Yeah, about that –"

"Daidouji Tomoyo," she continued without missing a beat. "Whatever Sakura sent you here for, I can do it!" Tomoyo grinned widely.

Mustering up all of his available patience, Eriol wondered how _this_ girl of all people could help them with their problem.

"Our CD leaked, as you might already know," he began, feeling extremely self-conscious. "It would be great if you could find out just _who _leaked it." He waited, already planning an escape route. Eriol would flee once the girl told him she couldn't do it.

But instead: "Easy."

"What?" Eriol gaped. Tomoyo smiled, strutting to her room. She motioned for him to follow.

Walking through the pigsty that the girl called home, Eriol couldn't help but wonder how people lived like that. He couldn't remember how he lived when the band had been on the streets. _How the hell did we get by?_

"Uhh, Daidouji-san…"

"Tomoyo," she muttered absently, absorbed in the luminous screen of the computer.

"Right. How long will this take?"

She looked at her self-programmed digital watch. "Five minutes and forty-three seconds."

"Amazing."

"I am, thank you," Tomoyo replied, a hint of amusement laced in her words. Spinning around in her chair, she looked Eriol over. "You're shorter in person."

"I am?" He twitched dangerously.

"Yes," she replied, unfazed. "So tell me about this Li Syaoran guy that Sakura always talks about."

"Huh?" Eriol's eyebrow lifted. "She always talks about _him_?"

"Every time she calls me," Tomoyo assented. She decided she wouldn't feel too bad about the small white lie.

"Well, for one he's a complete idiot."

"Really?"

Eriol sighed, exasperated. "Aren't you supposed to be working your computer magic right now?"

"You're ruder in person too," Tomoyo mused. She checked her watch again. "Two minutes and twenty-seven seconds."

"Until what? Until I die of annoyance?" Eriol spat.

"Look who's calling someone else an idiot," she retorted.

He groaned. "Just…ugh. I'm leaving. Thanks for the help. I'll give Sakura my feedback later."

"Hold it, Hiiragizawa," Tomoyo called teasingly. "Looks like the tracer's back early. Lucky you!"

"T – tracer?"

"Ichirokito at sunrecords dot com," she read from the screen, frowning. "Ring a bell?"

"H – how did you do that?" Eriol sputtered, staring at the screen in shock over the girl's shoulder. "That's…Ichi-chan."

"Big shock there," she replied sarcastically. "Rival bands are always the sneakiest. He did leave some footprints behind. He posted it on an anonymous blog with an anonymous email address. That guy must've thought that anything anonymous was foolproof," she explained, as if that would clear everything up.

"What?" Eriol stared at her in confusion.

Tomoyo sighed, making him feel extremely stupid. "When you send an email to an anonymous email server, the server transmits the email to the user's real email address, which is stored in its database. My tracer is programmed to go into the user's real email and send me a copy of the address. Today is a Sunday – not a very busy time for these anonymous servers, so they redirect the email pretty quickly. If this Ichiro guy checks his email, he'll know someone tried to trace him." She took a sip from the large mug by her computer. "But that's beside the point, isn't it?"

Eriol remained silent, his mind spinning. "So the band broke up over nothing?"

"Looks like you've got more than one problem on your plate," Tomoyo murmured to herself.

"But who would've given the CD to Ichiro?" Eriol wondered out loud. "None of us would've done it…and the only other person with access to our songs is…" he shook his head. "Spinnel? It can't be."

"Only one way to find out, Hiiragizawa."

**x – x – x**

**Sun Records – Media room II**

Syaoran hit replay for the fifteenth time that afternoon. He was watching their promotional music video – the one with all four of them looking forward to a kick-ass CD and a spot on the tour.

_She's good_, he realized with dread as he watched his former idiot drummer begin her solo. _Better than Takashi, even._

Syaoran slouched in his seat. Why did he care so much? Why couldn't he replace them like before? Shaking the nagging thoughts out of his head, he averted his eyes back to the video.

"They're all good," he said out loud. "I've just been too interested in watching myself to notice." It was true – he had never before watched anyone else perform. Except Eriol, of course…back when they were…

What exactly were they back then?

Why did it feel so different from the present?

But the most pressing matter was…

"Why the hell do I keep watching the drummer?"

**x – x – x**

**Sakura's Room**

"Sorry Ryu. I'm a bit tired. Can you repeat that?" Sakura yawned again, holding her hand against the mouthpiece.

"Sure. My friend and I are doing this gig tomorrow at Kansho tomorrow. It's just a temporary thing, and I was wondering if you'd be our drummer." The boy sounded a bit nervous, and Sakura wondered why.

"Of course, Ryu-chan," Sakura replied cheerfully. "Just give me the song." She twirled a drumstick between two fingers in anticipation.

"Yeah, I'll email the score to you. You can do the part however you like."

"Alright, that's great."

There was a pause on the other line. "Ano…Sakura?"

"Mhmm?"

A mumble came from the other end that somewhat resembled "I thin guy lie gyu".

"Sorry? I must be really tired." Sakura laughed uncomfortably. She could've sworn the boy had just said something quite…awkward – something she would've rather not have heard.

"Nevermind. See you tomorrow." Ryu hung up hastily.

Sakura sat there, phone in hand. "Why would it be so wrong for him to like me?" she asked herself. Falling onto the bed, she rubbed her temple. "It's not like I have anyone else to commit to."

Little did she know that she wasn't the only confused band member that day.

**x – x – x**

**A/N: **I don't own anything, except the chapter title.

My stories hardly even go through an alpha stage…

I guess it's true that a writer – however crappy he or she may be – is the worst judge of his or her own work.

I checked my statistics earlier and I was surprised to find that my weird, twisted story had much more alerts than this one. And I definitely like this one better D:.

Eh, I've always been better at more angsty and depressing stories than these types – which is why Broken Glass is much more fun to write.

Gahh. Whatever I do, the borders won't stay :'(.

Almost almost almost done!


	6. Chapter 5: Sound the Alarm

**The Sounds**

**Chapter 5, Part 1 – Sound the Alarm**

**The site of a deadly mistake**

"Ichiro, are you sure that was a good idea?"

Ichiro smirked. "Of course. Getting rid of all evidence of their contracts with the record company will nullify their chances of ever defeating us."

"But…"

"What is it, damn it?!" Ichiro growled. "You've been interrupting my rants way too much today."

"…they broke up…"

"WHAT?!"

**x – x – x **

**A dark, familiar office**

"Have you set out the evidence?"

"Naturally. Everything is prepared."

"And it's guaranteed that Ichiro-kun will find them, I assume?" The woman chuckled. "I wouldn't want our Syaoran-kun to become suspicious."

"Of course."

**x – x – x **

**Sun Records – Lobby **

"Oi, Ichiro-kun!"

Ichiro turned, his dark hair falling over his face in a very "squee"-worthy way. "Spinnel-sama?"

Spinnel smiled at his victim – a predatory smile. "Can you do something for me, Ichiro-kun?"

"Sure," Ichiro replied indifferently.

"Can you run up to Li-kun's dressing room?"

Ichiro frowned. "Why?"

"I need you to deliver this to him. He needs it for the performance tomorrow." Spinnel held out a large envelope.

Ichiro stared at it, confused. He didn't take it.

"What's wrong, Ichiro-kun?" Spinnel pryed, getting annoyed.

"Spinnel-sama…didn't Li's band…break up?"

The co-president's smile tumbled from his face.

**x – x – x**

**The room of a hurting boy**

"Where are you now, Sakura?" Syaoran asked himself, twirling his abandoned guitar pick between his fingers – it was from the lessons he had never received.

The answer greeted him in the form of a text message. "Sakura is at Kansho with Ryu. Meet you there after some business with Nakuru. – Eriol."

**x – x – x**

**Kansho**

Syaoran arrived at the concert hall with enough steam to drown ten dogs. He had taken seven showers – yet his confusion had not washed away.

"You're a bit late," the annoying man at the door told Syaoran, "but you're here in time to catch the finale filler band." Syaoran stared the man down.

"That's all I need, sir."

He entered the noisy concert hesitantly – it was his first time being in an audience.

However, the sight of her blocked out all of the noise and excitement of his surroundings.

Sakura. Her wild, unique hair. Her rare, bright eyes…her constant resiliency to everything and anything – even him. Her beautiful drumming onstage with Tohma Ryu….

Without thinking, the former lead singer pushed through the agitated crowded, ignoring yells of annoyance and anger. "Sakura!" he called as soon as he reached the foot of the stage. The weak yell did not reach the ears of the drummer.

"SAKURA!" The girl turned, her eyes widening in surprise. Syaoran's heart leapt when he saw the slightest reddening of the girl's cheeks.

_What's he doing here? Why am I almost…happy to see him?_

Sakura's hands suddenly froze, the drum line of the song coming to a sudden halt. The entire audience fell silent, and the rest of the band turned to the disturbance.

Ryu shot a concerned glance at her. "What's wrong?" he mouthed.

Unexpectedly, Sakura felt tears welling up in her eyes. _"Idiot drummer." "You can't even play the drums!" "…idiot…" "…dumb girl…" _Her chest hurt.

And she ran.

Only Syaoran caught the hint of pain in her eyes before she turned away.

**x – x – x**

**Kansho – Backstage **

Ryu's green hair flew behind him as he ran into the rehearsal room. "Sakura?" he called frantically.

"I'm right here," came a muffled voice from behind the black curtains.

"Sakura, is something the matter?" Ryu asked, concerned. _It doesn't matter anymore. It doesn't matter that Sakura doesn't like me romantically. She's a friend…and that's all._

He was surprised to see a tearful Sakura. "I…I have to leave Tokyo."

"Why?" Ryu asked in shock.

"I don't know about anything anymore, Ryu-chan. _All I know is that I have to get out of here_."

**x – x – x**

**An ominous office**

"It's really interesting, Nakuru-san," Eriol began, looking his boss in the eye, "how you manipulate us."

Nakuru simply smiled, lifting a glass goblet to her thin lips.

"Why?"

"Why what, Hiiragizawa-kun?"

"Why do you enjoy creating conflict?" Nakuru smirked at the anticipated question. "Why do you relish the discord of your own company?"

"Because it's _interesting_," she replied, "to see you squirm. Now you answer my question, Hiiragizawa-kun."

"It's only fair, I suppose," Eriol sighed.

Nakuru leaned in, her face coming dangerously close to Eriol's. "Why, cute little Eriol, are _you_ so sure _I'm _the one playing around with you boys?"

Eriol snorted humourlessly. "Because co-president-sama is too dull to plot leaks and false evidence by himself."

"So you've noticed." Nakuru giggled childishly. "What's so wrong about messing around with you kids? Fans are all addicts for dramatics, after all."

"So you had Spinnel-sama plant false evidence of a relationship between Syaoran and Sakura-chan?" Eriol asked coldly, retrieving a few pictures of Sakura he had extracted from Syaoran's dressing room. "Drama is supposed to be authentic."

Nakuru snorted. "Authentic? Don't kid me, Hiiragizawa. I'm not that blunt. Anyone can see the love-to-hate between those two." She put a finger to her chin. "And love-to-hate relationships usually develop sooner or later," she mused. "I was just expediting the process."

"Well, you've just about completely ruined it," Eriol spat. He left the room, slamming the door behind him.

Nakuru blinked. "What?"

**x – x – x**

**A malevolent office**

"Spinnel, before you say anything, I have something to ask you…"

The man recoiled, his throat closing up in nervousness. _She can't already know…if she does, I'm doomed._

"…about the leak," Nakuru finished. Spinnel let out a breath of relief.

"What about it?"

"Did you know that the band found out that you were the one who leaked their CD? Well, Hiiragizawa did, at least."

Spinnel raised an eyebrow. "Oh please. It was probably just a lucky guess."

"I suppose," Nakuru said carelessly with a shrug. "At least they're still with us. Hiiragizawa's not very assertive, that dumb boy."

"Right."

"So what did you want to see me about? How's the plan unfolding?"

"See…there was one thing that was not taken into account, Nakuru-san," Spinnel replied nerviously, twisting his tie around.

"What?" Nakuru growled, her eyes blazing. "What are you talking about?" Spinnel opened the office door, revealing a shaking Ichiro. His demeanor immediately straightened, as he knew that Nakuru's heat would not be taken out on him.

"Tell her, punk," he commanded smugly.

"…_the Ambient_…they disbanded," Ichiro muttered timidly, seeing a new side of the fiery boss and her right-hand man. "Hey, don't kill the messenger."

"I wanted good news, damn it!" Nakuru barked. "You were only supposed to find the evidence of a relationship, tell me, and embarrass the hell out of them!" The woman thrashed her arms around, no longer caring that the fearful and confused teenager was hearing all of her plans. Her long, dark hair twirled wildly around her. "Where's Li? Kinomoto? Tohma?!" She turned to Spinnel. "Are they all gone?!"

Spinnel hesitated. "Well, they're not really _gone_, per say…" He gulped. "Tohma's still in the industry. Kinomoto's still playing with him."

Nakuru let out a sigh of relief. "At least we still have the prodigy drummer and the bassist."

"Well…Nakuru-san…I mean that they are still in the _music_ industry. They're not…with us anymore."

The president's head shot up at a neck breaking speed. "BUT WE HAVE A CONTRACT!"

Spinnel lower his head, staring at his feet with great interest. "About that…" He glared at Ichiro. "Tell her," he said again.

Both adults turned to the poor teenager. "Uhh…to ruin their band…I hacked into the Sun Records' computer system…and I deleted all of their contracts…"

Nakuru snarled – an inhuman noise.

"But that was before my idiot guitarist told me that they disbanded!" Ichiro cried, attempting to defend himself.

_What have I done? What have I done to my company?_

_Our band…we were so close to success…_

_This room smells like vodka. Hmm…maybe Nakuru-san has some stored in her mini-fridge…_

There were two tragic heroes that day…in that one malevolent office.

**x – x – x**

**A dark street**

Syaoran stumbled down the barely-lit sidewalk, his mind spinning. _I care. I care that Kinomoto is confused…broken. It makes me feel broken too…_

He heard the faint sound of racing footsteps.

_Why didn't I see it earlier? If only I had seen it earlier…_

The footsteps grew closer. "Syaoran, you idiot!"

Syaoran didn't turn at the sound of Eriol's voice. _Why? Why?!_

"Syaoran, fuck it, _stop right there_! I'm a guitarist, not a marathon runner!"

He stopped, but did not turn. "What is it, Hiiragizawa?" he asked softly, his voice laced with pain and confusion. "What is it now? Have you come to tell me off more?"

"Syao –"

"No, I have things to say," he bit out. "I'm…sorry. For the past two years. For being an ass." He laughed bitterly. "For not seeing the precious things that were right in front of my blind, hideous eyes."

"Syaoran, will you fucking_ listen_ to me?" Eriol cried crudely. "One of your precious things is about to leave!"

"Huh?"

"To Okinawa!"

"What are you talking about?" Syaoran muttered dismally. "Interrupting my apology for some stupid cryptic message? Some friend you are…"

Eriol groaned. "Sakura. She's leaving. On the subway. To Okinawa," he enunciated. The words hit Syaoran like daggers.

"She can't do that."

Eriol shook his head grimly. "Oh, but she can. And that's exactly what she's doing."

**x – x – x**

**Subway**

"Kinomoto, stop this right now!" Syaoran ordered, his throat closing. "Why are you doing this?!" He had run all the way to the subway station – an activity not suited for his singer's body. He had been greeted by a closing set of glass doors.

Sakura's expression froze to her face as she heard his soft last words. _"I think I might like you."_

And that frozen expression was the last thing Syaoran saw before his let his pride fall into a train wreck.

On the stuffy subway, Sakura's tears threatened to fall. "Baka. What a stupid confession." She laughed and choked laugh. But somewhere in her heart, she felt as if those words brought immense joy to her. _Why?_

**x – x – x**

**Chapter 5, Part 2 – The Sounds of Love**

**Eriol's Attic**

"The sun's not coming up, Eriol," Syaoran moaned, falling back into Eriol's worn plaid couch.

"Mope to yourself, emo kid," Eriol muttered, adjusting his tie. "Don't invite your black parade to my world."

Syaoran glared at his friend. "Being on top of the world right now doesn't give you any right to ignore my angst." His voice contained a hint of playfulness, but Hiiragizawa Eriol knew his friend. And he knew that Syaoran was feeling anything but playful at the moment. Nevertheless, he smiled and played along.

"Don't ruin my brilliant, bright, sunny day, Li. Daidouji-san won't have fun with the mopey boy you're turning me into," he sniffed.

"So you think you're so great for scoring a date with a computer nerd?" Syaoran smirked.

"Hey, you couldn't even get an idiot drummer geek to go out with you," Eriol replied unthinkingly. Immediately, he knew the words had struck a nerve. The painful half-smile on his friend's weary face made him want to slap himself and choke on his own words. "Syaoran…gomen ne."

"It's alright," he managed, "I'll call Ryu-kun. He's bound to want to listen to some low, depressing soap boxes. Tohma's a bassist, after all." He smiled again. "Go have fun, Hiiragizawa." Eriol's expression froze to his face. His friend hadn't said anything positive to him in more than two years.

"Right," Eriol replied hesitantly. "I'll have fun for your sake, Syaoran. I'm glad you're back," he added. Before Syaoran could ask what he meant, Eriol left his attic.

"Broken hearts unite," Eriol whispered to himself with a soft smile as he opened the door to the street. "I'm glad about that too, Syaoran – you're able to get along with Ryu. And that's something the old you would've never been able to do."

He held his arm out into the street, hailing a taxi. "Welcome back, Syaoran. Looks like Sakura really did change you. She has your heart up against the wall."

**x – x – x**

**Tokyo Shopping District**

Eriol felt content at the look of pure pleasure on Daidouji Tomoyo's face as she browsed through the racks of clothes and new designs at the expensive shopping district.

"Like it, Daidouji-san?" he breathed into her ear. She blushed lightly.

"It's too expensive," she replied lightly, fingering the price tag on the small Sony laptop. "Besides," she continued cheerfully, "I've already bought this." Tomoyo held up the small bag in her hand – an inexpensive hard drive. "Chiha-chan – my computer – is really in need of more space," she explained. "Come on, let's go somewhere else."

As Tomoyo left the electronics store, Eriol stayed back long enough to place the two-hundred-thousand-yen item on hold.

He trailed after the girl, his thoughts drifting to Syaoran…and his failed half-attempts at love.

_Those half-attempts…they really took all of his heart. Syaoran is a proud guy._

"Is something wrong, Eriol-kun?" Tomoyo suddenly piped, breaking Eriol away from his thoughts.

"Nothing," he replied, forcing on a smile. "Just thinking."

"If you're worried about Sakura…" Eriol cringed. _Bullseye. _"…I'm sure she'll come back." Tomoyo beamed.

"Huh?"

"When Sakura-chan is set on something, she'll definitely go through with it," Tomoyo mused.

"What's she set on?" Eriol asked, confused.

"She's set on keeping her promise to me – that she'd get over it," Tomoyo replied vaguely.

Eriol laughed. "That's convincing enough for me, Daidouji-san, though I have no idea what you're talking about."

Tomoyo smiled back. "All I wish for is Sakura's happiness. To see someone you love fall for someone else…it's painful, ne?"

"Huh?"

"Nothing." Tomoyo's smile grew wider. "So, for Sakura-chan's sake…I hope she'll come back." Her eyes shifted to the setting sun. "Thanks, Eriol-kun," she murmured, her amethyst eyes sparkling. "Thanks for today."

The very confused Eriol, however, feared the wrath of the nerd – the wrath that would be unleashed once she uncovers his epic purchase.

**x – x – x**

**The room of a moping boy**

Fame plus money times power meant happiness. That was the formula for life Li Syaoran had been taught as a boy by his tycoon father and prosperous mother. When they both passed away, leaving the boy with virtually nothing, Syaoran knew there was something wrong with the equation.

His parents had all three ingredients. But they never had anything that touched happiness.

Syaoran couldn't decide when he had reverted back to the original formula. His music had once been so pure – so genuine. What happened to it?

But, as the saying goes (or so he thought it went), "you don't know how hot the stove is until you're stupid enough to touch it."

Syaoran definitely found out how hot the stove truly was. He had touched it, and he had paid the consequences.

"Sakura…" At that moment, Syaoran's rotting cell phone rang. _"And some days it seems like the clouds won't stay away…"_

He flipped it open immediately – he couldn't bear to hear the familiar sound of his – no, _their_ – old songs.

"Moshi moshi," he stated dully. The person on the other side stayed silent. "Who is this?" Syaoran asked impatiently.

"Ano…" a familiar voice stuttered. "Syaoran-kun?" A tiny yelp was heard. "Gomen ne. I can't call you that, Li-kun."

"Kinomoto?" Syaoran asked incredulously. "Is that really you?"

A nervous laugh. "I guess it is, isn't it?"

"Kinomoto…" Syaorna repeated uselessly.

"I…I just wanted to tell someone that I'm coming back to Tokyo. Tonight," she murmured softly. Syaoran could almost hear her blush. "It'll be quite dark by then; I'll need a ride…and there's no one else I can reach right now…Eriol-kun has his phone off," she explained, her words jumbled. "So…"

"It's alright, Kinomoto," Syaoran said with a smile. "Aren't we on friendly terms?"

There was a long pause. "I'm sorry…for leaving in the first place. That was really childish and selfish of me."

"It's alright. We all have things to be sorry for."

**x – x – x**

**Subway**

The wait for Kinomoto Sakura was the most frustrating thing Syaoran had endured in his nineteen years of life. Doubt kept surfacing and resurfacing to his mind, clouding his awareness of the damp, putrid Tokyo subway station. _What if she isn't coming? _He didn't believe that he was someone worth coming back for.

_What if she changed her mind?_

He had climbed too high on the mountain of realization to take a fall and live. He had given up all his pride to realize what was really important. But, what disturbed him the most was that through all of the chaos, he had never forgotten Sakura's face – the auburn hair that curled inward at all the right places…the sincere emerald eyes that shined even behind the thickest of glasses.

And he could've sworn he had just seen her in the window of the arriving subway. Her features were all too familiar.

_I must be delusional, _Syaoran convinced himself, still reluctant to take the plunge. He rubbed his temple, attempting to clear the illusion. "I must be insane."

A familiar giggle resounded in his ears, above the cacophony of the subway goers.

Syaoran looked up, his eyes meeting an all-too-familiar figure dressed in a plain t-shirt and jeans. Across her chest (of course that's not what he looked at first) was her trademark canvas messenger bag. "Talking to yourself, Li Syaoran?" Sakura asked playfully, though the expression did not touch her eyes. Confusion, after all, was not an easy thing to get over. She looked around the crowded subway station, smiling serenely. "I love this place. It's beautiful."

Syaoran could only stare at her, his feature skeptical. His uneven bangs fell over his face in a very familiar way, and that made Sakura giggle once more.

"The lights…the buzz," Sakura sighed nostalgically. "Syaoran-kun. This place is beautiful for that reason… and for one more."

"Huh?" Syaoran asked bluntly, still mesmerized by the sound of his name coming from the girl's mouth.

"You rescued me here," she replied vaguely. "Here, you helped me realize what I couldn't realize myself."

"Liar, liar," Syaoran muttered with a smile. "Burn in hell, Kinomoto. You were the one who made_ me _realize how much I had changed."

Sakura frowned. "You haven't changed." She giggled. "You have been and always will be the Syaoran-kun who makes crude remarks and constantly uses hurtful satire."

"And you're alright with that?" Syaoran's eyebrow arched.

Sakura smiled up at him, her emerald eyes smoldering into his. "The sun comes up, does it not?"

That was all he needed.

"You know what, Syaoran-kun? I…I think I might like you too."

**x – x – x**

**A/N: **I combined two chapters to make this one. Why? Because I didn't want to ever see this fic again. Yes.

Made it to the end? Good job. I have two new story ideas on my profile. Both are pretty well-planned, and I can't decide which to start next T-T. I've made a promise to myself to never have more than three stories going at once. Two is enough. Help me decide : D.

_Review, __**because**__ it's the last chapter! Or you can just not review. Eck._

**And…**I was originally going to update Broken Glass this week…but unfortunately, my chemistry project and my English paper have gotten in the way. It'll definitely be done next week, with very few mistakes (:. I rushed the last chapter. Bleh.

**Bonus:** Did you did you did you notice the various song references incorporated into this abnormally-long chapter? : D. Yayay. I might consider posting a carbon copy type of chapter later on with all of those lines highlighted. But here are some of the artists I have taken lyrics/titles from: Taking Back Sunday (1 phrase), Jack's Mannequin (5 titles, 1 phrase), The Used (2 titles), My Chemical Romance (1 title), Far Less (1 title), Boys Like Girls (2 titles)…and that's all I remember D:. There's more, I'm sure.

Anyways, happy last chapter! –confetti- I might consider posting an epilogue later in the form of a songfic.

**(Oh, and I don't own anything T-T.)**


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